Colleges with Data Science Degrees

Colleges and Universities are slowly starting to notice the demand for employees with data science skills. Most of the programs are not named data science, but they all focus on producing data people. Below are a couple of the programs I have noticed so far.

Hi Ryan, I thought that the CUNY program was on your list, but I can’t find it. City University of New York offers a fully-online MS in Data Analytics. Focus is on quantitative methods, computation, data management/manipulation-all grounded in a variety contexts). It’s a 36-credit program that can be completed in three semesters with a total cost just under $16,000 for both in-state and out-of-state residence. Great if you can add to your lists.

Hi,
I’m confounded by the title of this post. The post is edifying, even a saviour for a person scouring the web for info on degrees germane, however there seems to be a discrepancy between data science and analytics.

I think there is large debate about the difference, but I would agree with the article. Data Science seems to come more from the computer science side and analytics appears to come from a business focus.

Palak,
I would say most of the M.S. programs above would be suitable for a person with a B.S. in computer science. It is important to note that most data science/analytics degrees are going to have some level of business courses involved. That said, the North Carolina State program has been around for a few years. Plus, I think the Stevens program would be a good fit too. If you are interested in a PhD, Berkeley has a lot of good research going on in the area.
Good Luck.

Due to the lack of business & statistics background, I’m looking for one which runs for a duration of about 15-20 months.
Having gone through each and every one in the post, to me, Northwestern has the most appealing curriculum. However, its tuition is overwhelming.
I visited the webpages listing the student profiles at NCSU and other M.S.A. degree programs, what I noticed is that most of the students already have some concrete experience &/or a solid math/stat background. I, on the other hand, possess none.
I’ll, surely, look into Stevens’ curriculum, but doesn’t Cincinnati offer a similar curriculum?

Slight tangent, I have a BA in economics, advanced in Stata and have a decent background in math but have no CS experience. I’m more interested on the business side of data. Any recommendations on the type of programs I should look into to learn data science? My original plan was to do JC and coursera courses

Are you looking to go back to school for a bachelors/masters or just learn some extra skills? I would say learning a bit of computer programming would be beneficial for anyone wanting to get into data science.

Definitely not trying to do another bachelor’s, I’m trying gain sufficient knowledge to comfortably move into a business role in tech companies, then hopefully do a grad program after I have have a few more years of experience

I cannot real speak to the fees involved with the programs. A degree in data science is usually more interdisciplinary and we’ll – rounded than a program run out of a single department. CS focuses more on algorithms, business focuses more on management. I hope that helps.

It’s not all about business!
Some of the posts align data science and analytics with business applications. It’s important to keep in mind that scientists and researchers of all stripes are using statistical approaches, optimization, clustering, outlier detection and data cleansing methods, etc., not just analysts in the business world. In fact, some of the most sophisticated models come from outside of business. And, don’t forget the importance of analytics for finding features in non-structured data, such as images, text, 3-D models and simulations, etc. The large scope for data science and analytics was recently explored in a workshop: http://www.radcliffe.harvard.edu/exploratory-seminars/new-multidisciplinary-approach-data-understanding

Hey Ryan do you think for a B.Tech (Bachelor of Technology) grad in Computer Science with work experience (ERP systems and Exposure of BI) of almost 2 years which MS in BA is more suitable -10 months FT (Full-Time) or >15 months FT.

That is a good question. I think some of the shorter 9-10 month masters degree programs are geared toward highly experienced business professionals. With only 2 years of experience, I am not sure you fit the “highly experienced” category. I would suggest a longer program for you, but that is just my opinion.

Don’t mean to intrude, I’m from a similar background with less work exp.
Ryan is right, 2 year program would be better. If you observe the student profiles of such programs, you’ll find experienced professionals or freshers with a math/stat bachelors.
I’m looking for a program with a longer duration too. CMU’s BIDA is the only one I could find. Hope it helps.

If you guys can give me info on universities which are offering greater than 15 months Full-Time course that will be of great help. As the course is new, there are some handful of universities and in them I am confused regarding which are the ones to go for. Moreover will it be a good option to go for universities that are not highly ranked but have introduced MS in BA.

Look at it this way. Consider you join a traditional M.S. program which is 21 months because you start in September and end in May. Plus, you typically take the summer off to work/intern/rest. Suppose you don’t take the summer off and the traditional program is down to 18 months. Then 15 months doesn’t sound like such a crunch. It is a bit of a squeeze, but I think it is sufficient.

Two things bother me.
Time: adjusting to a new environment, especially foreign, could take time. So I’d gladly take the summer break.
Experience: I recently spoke to a Warehousing professional here. Rather than thriving on vague terms, he explained me how the lack of domain (any domain) expertise could render the analytics degree useless. I, for one, have no domain expertise as such.

Palak (and Sam),
Thanks for the good discussion. If time and a new environment are a concern, then definitely look for a traditional program. There are plenty of good choices on the list. If you really want to get into the analytics space, you could go to school or you could try to transition into an analytics job or you could just try learning it yourself on the internet.
I don’t think the analytics degree would ever be useless, but with some experience and domain knowledge it would probably be more beneficial.

The message says “Unfortunately Imperial College Business School is no longer offering this programme.” The message is generic so it might be an error or they might really have stopped running this programme. Thanks

Thanks again. I have added them to the list. You are going to like my new site. You will be able to add the links yourself. You won’t have to wait for me to update the list based upon your comments. Anyhow, thanks again.

MSc Advanced Computer Science – University of Reading
“The content of the programme is driven by the current research in Computer Science across the School, such as computational intelligence, machine learning, data mining and predictive analytics, big data, brain-computer interface, computer vision, visualisation and interactive technologies.”http://www.reading.ac.uk/sse/pg-taught/sse-mscadvancedcomputerscience.aspx

Now for a fresher in this domain (and not considering the course duration factor), which one of the above do you feel is the more relevant option? Further, are the certificate courses more suited for working professionals in the analytics domain?

Thanks for that input. To put a perspective in, these MS degree courses in data science go head to head primarily against the traditional MS degree in statistics. Would everyone here agree to the notion that for a long term leadership role the statistics degree holds more relevance (in designing studies, optimizing algorithms), while a data science degree is more of a present market requirement (jack of many trades!).

While both are not mutually exclusive, but certainly a choice to be made. Which one should it be?

The scope of finding needle in haystack rather than statistical summarization is what is driving BigData. The processing at scale and algorithmic approach is what computer science brings in here in Data Science. So, it is different from the pure statistical courses.

Thank you for the list of colleges which offer data science courses.
My question to you is which college would you suggest for MS course in Business Analytics keeping in mind that I’m a CS undergrad student and looking forward for this course immediately after I complete my undergrad studies.

Remember, these are just my opinions. I would suggest the program at Stevens, North Carolina State or NYU Stern. There are many other great programs on the list, so make sure to look at what are the exact specifics (courses, specialization, location, duration, …) you want.

Bentley University in Waltham, MA offers an MS in Marketing Analytics as well as a graduate certificate and a concentration/specialization in Business Analytics in its day MBA program. Google for links

The Programs in Analytics and Statistical Studies (PASS) from statistics.com seems worthy of mention. They offer a “Data Analytics” concentration that is similar to the data science certificates listed above.

I have mulled over adding these programs. I decided against it since they do not belong to a college or university. The statistics.com programs are very good though. Maybe I will add an extra blog post to highlight the Statistics.com programs. Thanks for leaving the comment though.

I have a BS in Computer Science with a minor in math, and am an experienced professional software engineer. I’ve been contemplating moving more into more of a business role such as analyst (or “data scientist”?), but I have a lot of programming experience which would be useful, too.

Being able to solve data problems at scale will be important, given the amount of data that is available today. Traditional stats is not enough.

It seems to me that the difference between analytics and “data science” is primarily one of scale. Knowing how to harness computing power to process large data sets requires more of a CS background.

Some of my considerations for evaluating various programs are:

– How much of an emphasis on fundamentals of statistics, math? More breadth and depth seems better, and should make one more adaptable as the technology changes.
– This involves an inevitable tradeoff between scope and cost/time. The shorter programs cannot cover as much material as the longer ones, but they can be completed more quickly at a lower cost.
– How important is the credential? Then one might optimize for name recognition. Does the name recognition of the institution matter?
– Is my goal to get the credential or to learn? I want both, but I don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on a certificate from an unrecognized school.
– Online part-time vs. full-time on campus. Leaning towards online part-time since I don’t want to stop working.
– What’s the value of the coursework outside of the certificate program? One of the options below seems geared towards life-long learners and also caters to corporate training.

Thanks for your article. If you have any thoughts about how to evaluate these programs I would welcome them.

I’m currently looking closely at:

U of Washington
UC San Diego
statistics.com

I liked these but ruled them out based on cost and time commitment:

NCSU
Stern NYU
Stanford (the certificate program is 3 times as expensive as the state schools)

Nate,
There is a lot of information here. I frequently get asked many similar questions. I think I am going to put together an “advice for data science graduate school” blog post. I will try to cover the topics you asked about above.

Thanks for the very thought out comment, and look for the new blog post in the coming week.

Hey Ryan, I’m currently enrolled in the College of Charleston’s program of data science and wanted to inform you that they updated the program. It is now called Data Science instead of Discovery Informatics and is now not only a minor, but a major offered as a BS or BA in a full undergraduate program. On campus only though, I’m afraid. Just letting you know 🙂

Ryan,
Thanks for asking! Im still fairly new to the program, having just taken the introductory class last semester, but I can tell you that the subject is wildly fascinating. For someone who grew up on the internet and while being intrigued with the capabilities of information technology (weird, i know), the possibilities I that I see with this education are endless! We have some AMAZING department heads that keep the courses interesting and and subject matter extremely relevant. For someone that has struggled for quite some time to find a proper career direction, I couldn’t see my self pursuing anything else!

Hey the course offered by Royal Holloway, University of London has three related big data degrees
1) MSc in Computational Finance
2) MSc in Machine Learning (Very Theoretical and has strong Math Content)
3) MSc in Data Science and Analytics(Very Applied and Practical)

They also all come in with one year in industry but only for qualified individuals.

Have a look @ there website the core modules information is available in detail now.

Hiya! I’m just wondering whether you are on any of the big data courses in Royal Holloway?? I’d like to apply for one of them due to the opportunity of a year in industry, but not sure about how likely students on these course finally got placements..

Hi Ryan,
You’ve been doing a great job here!
I wanted to ask you (and other readers) some advice.
I have a BSc in Economics and want to pursue a career in statistics/BI/data mining.
Besides some basic statistics, while I had some middle management jobs, I didn’t have any job experience on those fields. I started to study on my own programming and reading about database systems.
So, I am interested in knowing what I should do. (To do a MSc is on the top of my list, but) what kind of studies should I start?

On a side note, I recently moved to another country and possibly will move again next year. If pursuing a PG degree, maybe I should take the distance learning mode. The problem is that I don’t seem to find many that are affordable to a young professional.
I wouldn’t mind your take on that as well.
Thanks in advance and keep up the good work!

First, I have been very slow about responding to this and many other comments. Sorry. Your question entails a lot. Here is my first question to you. What are you hoping to do? I promise to answer much quicker this time.

HI Ryan.. Great Work!!! I am also looking for Big data graduate course but i am aiming only for Canada. I am wondering if you can help me to know which all universities are providing course in data analytic. Also it will be great if you can suggest which course is the best for full time.

I am not real familiar with the colleges/universities in Canada. Here is what I can tell you. York University offers a Business Analytics program (now on the list above). It is one year full-time. That is the only “data science” program I know about in Canada. However, both Simon Fraser and University of Toronto offer machine learning classes and have some research interests in data science/NLP/data mining. Thus you could attend one of those schools and tailor your program towards big data.

Thanks for the link, it is now on the list. I am not aware of any rankings. It is probably because many of the programs are new and do not even have graduates yet. The North Carolina State program is the exception. That program has been around a while and has a very good reputation.

Dear Ryan,
SMID could be of interest for your great list.
It is a BS degree running in Genoa, Italy since 2001 before the name ‘data science’ was fashionable.
Its nickname SMID stands for Statistics Mathematics and Data Management http://www.dima.unige.it/SMID/

It is very similar to the new BS degree in Data Science at the Department of Statistics, Warwick.

Thank you for the extensive list. I am currently an undergraduate student who just recently discovered the field of data science and would like to start applying to graduate programs in the near future. First, would it be worth it to do a data science certificate program if my undergrad major is not related to computer science/math/statistics? And I’m very interested in doing analytics in sports. Is there any avenue in particular I should focus on?

If you want to get a master’s degree, I see no point in getting the certificate first. Just look for a program were you think you will fit in an succeed. Many of the programs have different prerequisites and coursework. I am actually not aware of any programs that currently focus on sports analytics, however there are a number of companies that focus on sports analytics. Maybe see if you could intern with one of those companies. Thanks for reading the blog.

You have a great list here, I believe the most comprehensive on the web. I know that us viewers can’t dynamically sort it or filter it. However, it would be great if you can sort it alphabetically at least, and ideally sort it alphabetically by US state and country. It would still be a static list, but it would be immeasurably more useful, as searching for programs will be very easy and quick.

Need your opinion: I know NCSU’s program is probably the best one in the US, and I think you agree. Which other US programs in analytics would you select to make a list of the top 5-10 programs? Thanks!

First, thanks for the college link to Queen’s. I added it to the list.
Next, I love the idea of a more searchable/filterable list. Listudy.com kind of helps with that, but it is not to that point yet.

About graduate programs, I don’t really have a top 5 list. I would put NCSU in the top 5, but I may put the NYU program at #1. I think I would also rate the Berkeley online program pretty high. I should maybe put together a top 5 list and post it to my blog. The problem is: I have no real criteria for making such a ranking (most of the programs are very new).

Hi Ryan,
Firstly, thanks for compiling the list.
I have been accepted for this course by University of Mich – Dearbon and Stevens Institute of Technology.
Can you please give me an input as in which course is better study and placement wise??
I am from Finance background and have work exp of 5 yrs as business Analyst – IT for Investment bank Research project.

Remember, this is my opinion and I do not have experience with either program. I would think both programs would be good, but I would favor Stevens due to its location close to New York City. New York City is a major data hub currently. That is my opinion, take it or leave it.

I would add Maastricht University’s MSc in Artificial Intelligence Programme (2 Years fulltime)
imo more related to Data Science than the present Maastricht University’s Business Intelligence Programme.

Furthermore, the german taught Programm from TU-Dortmund is one of the best Data Science Programmes in Germany (TU Dortmund developed RapidMiner machine learning software) BSc and MSc are available at TU Dormund.

This is an awesome list. You seem to have a wealth of knowledge on this subject so here’s a question I have been wondering about.

I am a year out of a Math/Stat (heavy R coding) BS degree. I have a great job doing predictive analytics in sports, but would like to get a graduate degree to further my education. Thus, it has to be online.

I am looking mainly for an increase in Bayesian learning while also improving my overall business analytics skills (as I only did pure stats in undergrad). Any thoughts would be so helpful!

Thanks, Ryan!!! I’m writing a paper on the emergence of data science and your list has been very helpful in identifying university departments across the country who are training future data scientists.

I currently work as HR Data specialist and I am interested in HR Analytics, HR reporting, and HR Metrics. Any advice on programs that might be helpful for these areas? I live in the New York City Area and my undergradaute degree is in psychology.

Honestly, I am not familiar with the HR analytics specialty. I will say NYC is a hotbed for data science education programs. Between CUNY, Columbia, and NYU; you should be able to find a program to meet your needs. NYU is expensive, but they have a number of data science/analytics programs offered via many departments. Also, the Northwestern online program might be a good fit too. I would suggest picking a program with more of a business analytics approach.

Hi Ryan
This is quite appreciable !! good work.
However, I find very less Canadian universities offering masters in data science both in the above list and on their respective sites. Do you have any general idea about how good they are?

Thanks for the comment. A few months back, I did a fairly good search on Canadian data science programs. http://www.listudy.com/list/data-science/canada That list contains all that I know about. Honestly, I cannot speak to the quality of any of the programs.

hi ryan, first thanks for the amazing list it is a resource of immense value..

im an industrial engineer with 1 year work experience in sql and R analytics..

ive been looking at the masters and many of them require a computr science background which i dont have.. i know the basics of coding and i a am a hands on learner.. but i cant prove that in an admission..

You are welcome. I do have some follow-up questions for you. Do you want to learn computer science? What exactly are your goals?

With your background, I think you have the potential to get into some computer science MS programs. If you want to stay more on the business side, there are many great business analytics programs on the list. It all depends upon your goals.

Ryan,
great contribution, congratulations!!!!
I’m geologist and I’m on the business side. On the other hand, I would like to have some “content” in science computation on the master degree or Phd. I’m searching universities considering your list.

I am planning to pursue my MS in Business Analytics in USA. I had a couple of doubts and with your expertise in this area, could you please help me find an institute which is a good fit for me:

I have 3 years of work experience with Deloitte Consulting India Pvt. Ltd and am currently in between jobs. I am looking for a course which teaches us about some tools for data handling but not have too much of programming applications in their curriculum. I want to come back to consulting area with more knowledge of industries as well as to be equipped better with data analyzing strategies.

I have been rigorously researching for institutes offering ms in business analytics, but i haven’t come across a comprehensive list yet which provides ranking in terms of programs in the USA.

It would really help if you could provide me with some information regarding this.

http://datascience.community/colleges
That list is sortable, unfortunately no rankings.
There are plenty of choices on the list. A program in or near one of the big cities (San Francisco, New York, Chicago) might be a good choice. It might help you industry knowledge, plus there are many networking options.

In the Fall of 2012, the College of Business at Arkansas Tech University (AACSB-accredited) added a Business Data Analytics major. The program is small but growing and mixes business knowledge with data analytics. Here are links to the College and to the curriculum. There are several corporate partners actively supporting the program, including Acxiom.

Hi, could you please let me know how good is the 2 yr MS Program in Data Sc at DePaul Univ? Also, what would be the top 10 colleges offering a MS in Data Sciences in your opinion? Thank you. Regds, ravi

I am not overly familiar with the DePaul program. By looking at the course details, I would say the program looks rigorous and flexible. The offer a number of specializations. I would say it is a good choice.
I do not have a top ten list, but that might be a good future blog post.

I work as Research Analyst and Research Consultant. I have a MS in Experimental Psychology with extensive training and applied experience in statistical analysis, modeling, and experimental design. However, I see the trend with data science and see that I really could use some more training. I am very interested in a PhD in Data Science/Analytics. I saw further up your blog you answered this question in 2012, but do you know if any recent programs have started offering this online besides just Colorado Tech? I would love to move for PhD, but I have a spouse in medical school so that is not going to happen. Any advice you could give would be great.

Honestly, online PhD programs are very rare. I am working on a new/better list of schools, but Col Tech is still the only online doctoral program. You might do just as well getting a masters degree in data science, there are a number of schools offering those online (unless you want to be a college prof, then you need a PhD).

Hii Ryan,
Thanks for the the extensive list of colleges…I have a personal query though…
I have a Marine Engineering degree, and have over 4 years of sailing experience..Although I had to quit Sea so all thats left behind.
I was always exceptional in Maths and due to my inherent love for it,I am currently pursuing Actuarial Exams and am a Student member of Institute of Actuaries of India, and hence have relevant base in stats and financial maths
I want to make a career in Predictive modelling and hence want to do a full time MS in data science…Keeping my past in mind(no relevant work ex and basic computer knowledge), what course would you recommend,outside US

I am not aware of any community college programs. Some people argue that 4 years is not enough to learn how to be a data scientist. Thus, I don’t really expect to see many community college programs. The only similar thing I can think of is an undergraduate certificate. Northwestern College (Iowa) http://online.nwciowa.edu/analytics
There are other certificate programs available here http://datascience.community/colleges

Thank You for replying back,
Ryan my goal is to educate my self in Data Science and start working, I believe it’s better to start working and gaining experience rather than to get my masters.
Which one is more valuable Bachelors or Certificate ?
And out of the colleges that offer Bachelors and Certificate. Which one would you recommend ?

I think a Bachelors is more valuable, but it costs more and takes much longer. If you do choose a bachelors program, the programs at Northern Kentucky, College of Charleston, and U. of Rochester all look very good. If you decide to go with a certificate; Stanford, Syracuse, and U. of Washington offer some good choices. Good Luck. Feel free to share what you decided upon. This site make finding a program a bit easier: http://datascience.community/colleges

I checked the subjects for BS in Data Science of these 3 schools, And U. of Rochester is too expensive since it’s private school. It came down to College of Charleston and Northern Kentucky U. Which one of these 2 would you recommend ?
And What do you think of U. of San Francisco ?
I asked about San Francisco because I always wanted to lived there and once I finish my school, I would wan to move there, But if there’s a big difference between the classes in curriculum and It makes it easier to secure a job with a degree from College of Charleston and Northern Kentucky U, Than I’ll consider one of these 2 schools.
Since you work in the field, You know more which one of these curriculum will be used in daily real life of Data Scientist.

Thank You and I really appreciate this blog and the information you have shared, Sam.

Honestly, all 3 of those programs look very good. NKU is the only program that requires a database class, and if you select one of the other school, you should try to take a database class as an elective. I think all 3 would prepare you well. Also, I think U of San Fran is a private college, so cost might be an issue. Thanks, I hope this helps.

Thank You for your help,
I have decided to go with College of Charleston.

I really want to become a Data Scientist but I am concerned that just like Software Development and Web Development jobs that are going over sea, Do you think Data Scientist jobs will go over sea too and my long term goal is to start a small company and provide data mining services.

I don’t think data science jobs will all go overseas. Many software development jobs have gone overseas, but there are still plenty of excellent software development jobs in the US. Companies are struggling to find good software developers. I feel data science will be much the same. Some jobs will go overseas, but many will still remain in the US.

And by the way, good choice with the College of Charleston and a small data mining company would be awesome too.

Hi Ryan, I am a BI software professional and has been working since past 9 years. I have used various BI & ETL tools in my day to day work, I am kind of interested in doing data warehouse & BI related MS programs. Can you please recommend?

I am in San Diego, please suggest what schools offers these kind of programs here?

UCSD is a great school, but it may be more research focused than what you are looking for. I am not sure what other schools with data science degrees are in the San Diego area. Would you like an online program?

I have an undergraduate degree in Information Technology.
And I have two years of experience working Big Data space.
I work as a big data developer in IT company.
Which course would be good for me ?
also I would like to know the costs of the course for entire duration?
If any scholarship provided to students ?

Can you please list out Universities which are running Data Science course having more concentration on Technology front rather than management front ?
Also they should have courses related to Big Data.

Will my prior technical knowledge of Big Data technologies will help me get into these universities ?

The only reason I’m planning to get my Bachelors degree is to secure a job easily as Data scientist. If I can learn everything by getting a certificate, Do you think it’s still worth going for bachelors ?

Janet,
I added statistics.com to my list of bootcamps at http://datascience.community/bootcamps
I believe that is the most appropriate list since it is not associated with a traditional college or university.

Hi Ryan ….a great resource ..
I am applying for masters in data science for fall sem(2015)..I have done Btech in electrical engineering from one of the top engineering colleges in India and am working as a data analyst at a MNC.I have done my projects in Machine learning( 2 research publications in the same) and currently I work on range of technologies in analytics domain.(My present work ex is 1 year)
I wanted to know that what are my chances of getting an acceptance for one of the data science courses.(My GRE score is 320).
thanks

Hi friends,
I am planning do MS in UK.I have 2 years of experience in Database and datamining concepts.Now i planning to choose a Liverpool university(Msc Web science and Big data).Iam not sure how is the placement activities in UK for foreign students.
Friends:Kinldy give me your valuable feedback.That would be really helpfull to proceed with this further.

Well that depends. Does the field of data science interest you? Do you like software development? If you like what you are currently doing, then I see no reason to switch, but if you want to become a data scientist then now is a good time to transition.

I realize you are no longer updating your list, but could you please add the following to your 2014 list of programs in Data Science. Miami University of Ohio offers an undergraduate minor in Business Analytics and an undergraduate major in Analytics. URLs for the programs follow.

Hi Ryan
I am a engineering graduate without experience. I have done many 12 Mooc courses offered online with certification. My GRE score is 332. What are my chances to get selected in top 20 programs in big data analytics?I am looking for a program of longer duration as I am a fresher in this field.What do you recommend a fresher?

Thanks for the comment. I really don’t know the chances of getting into a program. I am not on any admission’s committees and I know they look at many factors, not just GRE. That said, here are a couple of posts I have written on the topic.

I am working in an Big Data Analytics firm since 2014 and would like to pursue a masters degree in the same field. I’ve got my GRE scores ready but I am confused with which courses to apply for. Can you please help me understand the differences between the courses – MS in Data Science , MS in Data Analytics and MIS(with data analytics concentration).
I would like an in-campus, 2 year long course that covers a wide array of topics(technical) in this field with business knowledge as well. Any advise on this would be appreciated.

Naren,
THanks for asking. Courses and programs have different names, but you really have to look at the individual classes. Generally, an MIS or MBA program with a concentration on data analytics will focus a lot on the business side of data science. A data science or data analytics program will focus more on the computational and statistics aspects of data science. That is a generalization, so you might have to check with each specific school.

I am a bachelor in computer application Graduate with 15 years of work exp. and now i am working as Quality analyst job. i am seeing for masters in data science. can you please suggest me some top colleges in west coast USA.

One that is just coming online is at Florida Polytechnic. The school is open for classes but the biggest drawback is that’s it’s still in the process of receiving it’s accreditation. It will be a viable option once that’s completed (Which should be anytime as it’s already been submitted to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools)

Your readers may be interested in following the Big Data and Analytics Educational Conference series which has been running for the last couple of years. The next one is next week in Puerto Rico, collocated with the AMCIS 2015 conference, see http://computing.derby.ac.uk/edcon2015/. It is sponsored by IBM, KDNuggets, ODBMS, University of Derby and Birmingham City University.

Thank you for very nice information you have provided here. I am a question which appreciate if you can help me with. I have a MSc in mechanical engineering however I want to get a master’s degree in Data science and join the industries in that area. Do you know any master programs which offer fundings (at least a tuition waiver) ? Master of computer science works to. Thank you.

I don’t know exactly which programs offer funding. I would advise you to stick with an on-campus program running from a computer science or mathematics department. Programs running from a business school don’t often offer funding. I hope that helps.

The University of Applied Science Brandenburg in Germany offers in cooperation with the Agency for further education und knowledge transfer (Agentur für wissenschaftliche Weiterbildung und Wissenstransfer e. V.) a new certificate programm “Data Science”, starting in October.

This is an amazing list!. I’m looking for though good masters ran by a computer science department. What are the best that comes to your mind?. My possibilities now are Southern California, Georgia Tech, NYU, San Francisco University, Simon Fraser, Aalto (finland), North Carolina State, UMass asthern (which is not in this list). Something else comes to your mind?

I think your list looks pretty good. Stanford also has great programs. Illinois Institute of Technology is also another good program run out of the CS department.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute has some great programs run out of the new data science department
The list of colleges at http://datascience.community/colleges contains information on the department.
Columbia and University of Rochester are a couple others that come to my mind

Do you have any more details? What type of program: 2 year or 1 year? When do you want to start? Is you background more computational, mathematical, business or something else? What area are interested in pursuing?

Hi Ryan
I have done Bs (Economics). Now looking to pursue my career as Data Scientist. Yet Pakistani universities not offered such program to do masters in it. What i am thinking to further start my studies. I am not sure what program will help me to do Ms /Mphil it. Is it Computer Science , Mathmatics or Statistics that help me most in pursing my career most in Data Scientist.

I feel that Saint Mary’s M.S. Data Science program would be a helpful addition to your site for prospective graduate students.
If you would like to learn more about Saint Mary’s College, the website can be reached via:http://www.saintmarys.edu

I am not aware of all the times students can be accepted for the various programs. There are many online programs that will take students at numerous times of the year. Sorry, my answer is not better, but you will have to explore the programs a bit.

Here at Regis University, new terms begin every 8 weeks, with upcoming terms beginning July 5, August 28, October 23, and January 15. A four course Certificate in Data Science, as well as a 12 course MS degree in Data Science is available.

In the U.S., undergraduate programs tend to be somewhat broad and multifaceted, with graduate degree more focused and specialized. Undergraduate degrees that are associated with Data Science could include Accounting, Business/Data Analytics, Physics, Information Technology, Computer Science, or other programs that include either Statistics or programming. There seems to be a good number of undergraduate programs in Data Science listed here. https://www.bachelorsportal.com/study-options/269779226/data-science-big-data-united-states.html

Thanks for asking. I do not know of any online PhD programs in business analytics. Here is a list of online Phd business programs, but I cannot speak of the quality or if they have a focus on business analytics.

Hi Ryan,
I really enjoy reading your Visual Data Storytelling with Tableau. In the book you mapped this list in Tableau. I am just wondering where you get the geographic data for all the US colleges. Thanks!

Sunny,
Thanks for commenting. First off, I did not write “Visual Data Storytelling with Tableau”. Although I have heard good things about the book. Evidently, it must link to the data science colleges dataset. The geographic data for the colleges comes from here https://github.com/ryanswanstrom/awesome-datascience-colleges/blob/master/data_science_colleges.csv
If you scroll to the right, you will see columns for country, state, and city.
Those columns were populated either by me (after checking the school website) or by someone else adding a row to the csv file.
Does that help?